Annoyance in the Court
by pencil gal
Summary: When Hermione needs to find a lawyer for her house elf trial, she gets stuck with Draco Malfoy. How is she meant to put a winning case together when all he does is annoy her all the time? Post-DH, EWE.
1. Part One

**Disclaimer: **_Harry Potter _and all its characters and situations belong to J.K. Rowling. I make no profit from this story.

**Annoyance in the Court**

_and the past knocks on your door_

_and throws stones at your window at four in the morning_

_- Shine, _Anna Nalick

**Part One**

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Day 1

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_Hermione was sitting in the stands of the Quidditch Pitch, watching Harry and Ron as they went through some extra drills before practice. She had brought her books with her but as yet she had not been able to bring herself to pick them up. Hermione knew that she should be working. It was halfway through sixth year and things were busy. She shouldn't be sitting here mooning over Ron. It was stupid and pointless and she had better things to do with her time. "See something interesting Granger?" drawled a voice behind her._

_With a slight start she glanced over her shoulder and found Malfoy lounging in the seat behind her. Hermione scowled at him and ignored his comment. "Shouldn't you be off terrorizing first years or something?" she asked a touch of scorn in her voice._

_Malfoy raised an eyebrow at her. "Bit touchy there Granger. You know, people have noticed how Weasel has taken to ignoring you. Is it because he's tired of you or are you just not good enough in the bedroom department?"_

_Hermione could feel her cheeks burning but she refused to let Malfoy get to her. "You're just jealous that you can't find anyone who likes you even a little bit. Now could you please leave? Some of us have work to do." She turned around with a huff and picked up a book from the pile._

_Malfoy leaned closer to whisper a final comment in her ear. "He doesn't see _you _Granger. All he sees is your usefulness."_

Hermione jerked awake as her alarm went off. She rubbed her eyes as she remembered her dream. She hadn't thought about that day in years. With a sigh Hermione rolled over to grab her wand from where it was vibrating with the alarm spell on her bedside table. As she hopped out of bed and shuffled into the bathroom, she tried to push the memory to the back of her mind. Why bother reliving old wounds when there was no way to change the past (not legally anyway). Hermione sighed again as she stepped into the hot shower. It was time to start another day.

Hermione smiled as she walked into the small office she shared with Luna Lovegood in Diagon Alley. It was a small organisation that they had set up together over the past year called Equal Rights for Magical Creatures (the ERMC for short). It wasn't what Hermione had expected to be doing after she had returned for her seventh year at Hogwarts after the defeat of Voldemort (Hermione understood how the world worked and while she was the smartest witch of her year, without NEWTs she wouldn't be getting any job offers). She had graduated from Hogwarts with Ginny and Luna and had immediately begun working with the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, with the hope of changing it from the inside.

After a few years of attempting everything that she could within the Department (constantly being moved from Office to Office in the process), and growing more and more unsatisfied with the way the system worked, Hermione had realised that if there was ever going to be hope for change then she would have to set something up her way. She discussed things with Luna (who had turned out to be an avid supporter of animal rights to Hermione's amazement) and finally quit her job. Together, with help from Mr Lovegood and The Quibbler, they had set up the non-profit organisation and were now in the process of preparing their very first case.

Setting her things down on her desk, Hermione shook her head as she noticed that Luna was apparently running late again. With a roll of her eyes she pulled out the case file for Dipsy the house-elf. They still needed to find a lawyer before they could go ahead with the suit. But so far everyone from the Department of Magical Law Enforcement had ignored them and refused to take the case. Hermione knew they were beginning to run out of options. After all, there really weren't that many practising lawyers that didn't work for the Magical Law Office.

Suddenly Luna burst into the office with a huge grin on her face followed by, of all people, Draco Malfoy. "Hermione, I have brilliant news," Luna announced. "I've found us a lawyer."

"That's great," replied Hermione. Before she could ask who it was, she was distracted as Malfoy shifted in his position at the doorway. "What's Malfoy doing here?" she growled instead. Hermione hadn't seen him since Hogwarts, but after her dream that morning she was in no mood to put up with him.

Malfoy smirked as he stepped forward to lean against Luna's desk, having found the opening he was waiting for. "I'm your lawyer," he stated smugly.

Luna was humming lightly, obviously pleased with herself, as she sat down at her desk. Hermione, meanwhile, blinked once, twice, three times and then shrieked, "You?" She couldn't believe this. Draco Malfoy, devil spawn, wanted to help house-elves? Not likely. It had to be some sort of joke.

Malfoy was still standing there with that smug, self-satisfied expression on his face. "Yes, Granger. Me."

"No way. I won't do it." Hermione looked past Malfoy to catch Luna's eye. "We'll find someone else because I refuse to work with Malfoy."

Luna's smile dropped as Malfoy snickered under his breath. "Shut it you," Hermione snarled at him. He raised his hands in surrender with an arch smile on his face.

Luna was thinking quickly, looking for a way to get Hermione to agree. "Draco do you mind waiting outside for a moment?" she asked politely.

Malfoy shrugged and moved back into the hallway, shutting the door behind him. Luna sighed as she watched Hermione, who had immediately begun ranting. "Luna, what were you thinking? Draco Malfoy. You want to hire Malfoy to defend house-elves. That's a contradiction in itself."

Shaking her head Luna pulled out her wand and cast a Silencing Spell on Hermione. "Okay Hermione, now just listen to me for a minute will you?" When she saw Hermione cross her arms in resignation she released a breath in relief. "Good. Hermione we don't have a choice here. We are never going to find anyone else to handle this case, we've already tried. And besides we don't have to pay him. He's offered to work for free."

Hermione raised an eyebrow and opened her mouth to ask a question. Luna waved her wand to take the spell back off. "For free?" Hermione was wary. Surely there had to be a catch somewhere. "Why would he be willing to work for nothing? And why would he even want to help us? It makes no sense."

Luna shrugged. "I didn't bother asking. I was too busy being excited that we had finally found a lawyer willing to take the case."

Hermione glanced down at the case file still lying open on her desk. She knew that Luna was right. With a sigh she stated, "Okay. But I'm not going to like this."

"You don't have to," Luna quickly replied as she went to open the door.

Hermione groaned to herself as Malfoy walked back in. When he glanced over at her she crossed her arms and tried to keep her tone neutral. "Just one question Malfoy. Why? That's it. I want to know why you would want to take this case." She wanted to know why he was taking the case for free as well but Hermione decided to save that one for another time.

"The publicity of course." Malfoy made it sound like she was an idiot for not figuring that out for herself. "Granger, this case is going to be huge. Nothing like this has ever been attempted before." He shook his head with a bemused smile. "There's a reason why you couldn't get anyone to take this. No one thinks you can win and no one wants to be involved with a failure. But if I win this it will be huge for my business."

"Of course, I should have known," Hermione spat out. "Draco Malfoy only ever thinks about how he can benefit from something." She held up a hand to halt his protest. "Okay, I give in. you're hired Malfoy."

Malfoy rubbed his hands together and smirked. "Excellent. Shall we get to work then?"

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Day 5

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_Hermione stopped in her tracks as she spotted Ron at the Weasley family table. He was holding hands with a woman she didn't recognise and they were staring lovingly into each other's eyes. Mrs Weasley was standing at the stove and glanced happily over her shoulder at the two._

_Ginny had invited her to stay at the Burrow during the Easter break as Hermione's parents were taking a trip to America. Hermione had felt awkward about accepting, considering she and Ron had broken up only two months previously, but Ginny had insisted that no one would care. And apparently no one did. Because apparently Ron had moved on._

_Just then Ron glanced up and spotted her standing in the doorway of the kitchen. "Hermione," he said with a smile. He stood up and pulled the other witch with him. "Let me introduce you to my girlfriend Shelly."_

"He is driving me crazy!" Hermione exclaimed. It was Friday night and she was having dinner with Harry and Ron at the Leaky Cauldron. Hermione took a sip of her butterbeer before continuing her rant. "Luna and I spent so much time and hard work getting that case file together, and then Malfoy comes in, takes one look at it and goes, sorry, not good enough. He walks into our office every morning as if he owns it, works with us for a couple of hours and then after assigning us work for the rest of the day, he disappears, claiming he has other clients to meet with. And it's only been a week! I don't know how long I can put up with him for." She stabbed her steak and kidney pie with her fork in frustration.

"I can't believe you're actually working with Malfoy," Harry replied, almost sounding amused by the situation.

"Why are you putting yourself through this?" Ron asked angrily. "It's Malfoy. He's a Deatheater and he's evil. You should stop this right now. He's probably going to sabotage the whole thing just so you fail."

Hermione let out an exasperated sigh. "He's not going to destroy the case. Malfoy said it himself, it's going to be high profile and so it's to his benefit to do his best if he wants to gain more clients. He just bugs me."

Ron looked like he was ready to continue arguing about it but Harry directed a quick kick to his shin before he could say anything. After another bite of her pie, Hermione glanced back up with a forced smile on her face. "So what's been happening with you two this week?" she asked chirpily. She really wanted to move away from the subject of Malfoy.

"I've got a date tomorrow night," Ron announced with a satisfied smile. Hermione's smile became even more forced. Even though she and Ron had broken up over three years ago, and she knew that she definitely had no lingering feelings for him, it sometimes still hurt to know that he had moved on so easily while she had had a grand total of five dates since their relationship ended.

"Really?" Hermione replied through gritted teeth. "What's she like?" _Probably blonde, _she thought with a hint of bitterness.

"She's really nice." Ron had a dopey smile on his face now. "I met her at work. Her name's Belle. We had coffee together yesterday and now we're having dinner."

"That's great Ron," Harry commented, with a quick glance at Hermione. Harry knew that she occasionally felt insecure about herself when Ron seemed to have a new date or girlfriend every few months.

Ron drained the rest of his butterbeer and stood up. "I'm going to grab another drink. Do you two want anything?" Harry and Hermione both answered in the affirmative before Ron headed towards the bar.

As soon as he was out of earshot Harry turned to back to Hermione and asked, "Are you okay?"

"Of course Harry. I'm absolutely fine." Harry just raised his eyebrows at her in response. Hermione rolled her eyes. "Okay, so maybe it would be nice to go on a few of my own dates rather than hearing about Ron's all the time. But that doesn't mean I need a boyfriend. I'm very happy as I am." Hermione fidgeted with her knife and fork before changing the subject. She always disliked talking about her love life. "So how are you and Ginny?"

Harry shrugged and took a sip of his drink. Hermione raised an eyebrow. "That good, eh?" she remarked.

Harry glanced over his shoulder and saw that Ron was still at the bar. "We've been fighting a lot lately," he finally said. "Not even over anything important really. It's just like, neither of us can do anything right at the moment."

"I'm sure things will be okay. It's probably just a bit of a rough patch and nothing more."

"Yeah, maybe you're right." Harry didn't look very convinced or reassured though. But at that point Ron returned with their drinks so Harry and Hermione both let the topic drop.

When Hermione arrived home to her tiny apartment she found that Luna had been by and slipped a note under the door. It read:

_Hermione,_

_Draco came by after you left this afternoon. He says he wants to meet with Dipsy as soon as possible. He wanted to know if you could set a meeting up for sometime next week._

_Also he dropped off a folder of paperwork that he said you need to look through before Monday. I slipped it under the door._

_ - Luna_

Crumpling up the note, Hermione glanced down at the floor and realised that she was standing on a manila folder. With a scowl Hermione picked it up and started to flip through the papers inside. She narrowed her eyes at all the work that Malfoy apparently thought was too urgent to wait for Monday. He was doing this just to antagonise her, she was sure of it. Dumping the folder onto the table, Hermione went to fall into bed, determined not to think about Malfoy again until the morning.

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Day 8

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_They had saved Sirius. They were the heroes._

_So why was she sitting by herself in the girls bathroom at three in the morning thinking about the fact that she had slapped Draco Malfoy?_

_She remembers it felt good, felt right to slap him. She knew he deserved it. But she had never before resorted to physical violence. She had never needed to._

_Why did Malfoy always manage to bring out the worst in her?_

Hermione was less than happy to see Malfoy already seated behind her desk when she walked into the office on Monday. Apparently this really was going to be the worst Monday she had ever had. First she had woken up late after another dream about her past (and of course it just had to be about Malfoy), only to discover that there was no hot water and that there was a ladder in her last pair of stockings. By the time she had fixed these with magic Hermione had been even later. And now she had to deal with Malfoy. Brilliant.

"Granger, you're late," Malfoy smirked.

Luna, seeing the harried expression on Hermione's face, jumped in before Hermione could completely lose her temper. "Bad morning?" she asked sympathetically.

"You could say that again," Hermione replied. She turned to her desk again and dropped her briefcase on top of it, scattering the forms Malfoy had been working on. With her arms crossed over chest Hermione stared at Malfoy as he leaned back in her chair. Finally, through gritted teeth, she spat out, "Get out of my seat."

"But I like this seat Granger," Malfoy said in the most innocent voice he could muster. "It's so soft and comfortable, and look," he leant back further and kicked his feet up onto the desk, "I can even lean back and relax." Malfoy folded his hands behind his head.

Hermione glared at his feet and then directed her eyes back to his face. Malfoy had a feeling that if looks could kill then he would be dead and incinerated right now. "Move," growled Hermione. "Now."

Malfoy rolled his eyes and pushed himself out of the chair. Hermione was impatiently beginning to tap her foot. "Easy Granger. Keep your knickers on."

Hermione could feel herself stiffening up in anger as Malfoy stepped past her and dragged the spare chair to the other side of the desk. She forced herself to take a breath and try to calm down as she took her seat. Glancing past Malfoy, Hermione saw that Luna had ignored most of the staring competition and was off in her own world. Hermione shook her head, amused. As much as she loved Luna and knew that Luna could be quite perceptive (as she had been by trying to prevent Hermione from lashing out the minute she walked into the office), she really did spend so much of her time in her own little world.

Malfoy sent a glance over his shoulder to see what Hermione was staring at and let out an amused chuckle when he saw Luna's dreamy smile. But at least she was getting her work done, something that he and Hermione should also be doing. "Granger, do you mind getting your crap off my work? Because if we can't get your shoddy case in order then it will never go to trial."

Hermione only just managed to control herself as she shifted her briefcase to the floor so that Malfoy could reach his things. Without saying a word she pulled out the weekend work he had assigned her and pushed it across to him. He smirked and decided to rile Hermione up further, despite the fact that he could see that she was almost at her boiling point. "So did you manage to do this all right or will I have to fix it all again?" he raised his eyebrows at her with a condescending smile.

Hermione let out an aggravated scream. Luna looked up in surprise while Malfoy just watched Hermione. "You never change do you?" she hissed. "You're still the same arrogant, snide, conceited bastard that just lives to torment me. Well, you know what? This is my office. This is my organisation. And I'm sick of your 'I'm so much better than you' attitude." Hermione grabbed her purse and jumped up. "I'm going to get a coffee."

"You sure the caffeine won't make you even more tightly wound and snappy?" muttered Malfoy. He looked back up at her and could practically see the steam pouring out of her ears. Apparently she heard that last comment.

"Hermione, would you mind getting me a coffee as well?" Luna called out. She smiled, "Thanks."

She nodded and stalked out of the office. Luna directed her eyes back to Draco. "Is it really necessary for you to bait her? It's much nicer to be around her when she's not angry all the time."

"But it's so much fun," Draco replied.

Luna shook her head. "Do you want her to slap you again?" she murmured as she turned back to her work.

Draco's eyes widened and a hint of pink touched his cheeks. "Granger told you about that?"

"No. Ron did." Luna's dreamy smile had returned as she began to pay less attention to the conversation. "It's one of his favourite stories to tell."

"Why doesn't that surprise me?" Draco also turned back to his work at this point, when it became obvious that Luna wasn't going to say anything else.

By the time Hermione arrived back in the office she was in a much better mood. After giving Luna her coffee, she sat down feeling much more relaxed. She looked across the desk at Draco and graced him with a smile. Draco was somewhat unnerved by the change, even more so by the fact that she was actually smiling at him. That had never happened before. Draco didn't know what to say. An angry Hermione Granger he knew how to deal with, but a pleasant and polite one? He had no idea.

"I've set up your meeting with Dipsy," she told him. "She's going to come in on Thursday afternoon. That's the first chance she has to get away."

Draco nodded. "That's perfect. Because I've arranged a meeting with the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures for next Tuesday at ten o'clock."

Hermione frowned. "But I thought we were getting this case ready for trial."

"Come on Granger, I thought you were smarter than that. This will go to trial but we have to go about it the right way. Once we get knocked back by the Regulation Department, then we can appeal to the Wizengamot."

Hermione suddenly felt like an idiot and chose not to reply. Taking a book off her shelf, she opened it to where she had finished on Friday, and continued taking notes on cases that could possibly apply to Dipsy's. Draco was again surprised. Hermione Granger not continuing to argue and defend her point even after being proven wrong? Watching her from the corner of his eye he thought that maybe he wasn't the only one who had changed somewhat since Hogwarts and the war.


	2. Part Two

**Annoyance in the Court**

_and the past knocks on your door_

_and throws stones at your window at four in the morning_

_- Shine, _Anna Nalick

**Part Two**

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Day 10

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_He glanced up and looked around after hearing a soft rustling behind him. He was sitting in the library at Hogwarts, wearing his old Slytherin robes and he felt like he was sixteen again. Hearing the rustling again, Draco got up from the table and began walking through the aisles to find the source of the noise. He stopped abruptly as he found Hermione Granger leaning against a shelf with a book in her hand. "Granger," Draco murmured feeling surprised, though he really shouldn't have been. Who else would be in the library at this time of night?_

_She looked up at him and a slow smile stole across her face. "Hello Malfoy," she replied._

_Draco moved closer so that he was standing directly in front of her. Taking the book from her hand he replaced it on the shelf, all the while never moving his eyes from Hermione's. Leaning closer he whispered, "Call me Draco." And with that he kissed her._

_Lips were moving against each other, hands were roaming over bodies and their breathing was becoming erratic. Hermione nibbled lightly on his bottom lip and with a moan Draco pushed her harder into the bookshelf and lifted her up so that her legs were now around his waist. Their lips broke apart as their need for air finally took hold. "Draco," Hermione gasped._

_Draco smiled. Lifting one of his hands, he pushed a stray curl back behind Hermione's ear. As he leaned in to kiss her again he murmured, "I love you."_

Draco awoke with a start. He could feel his heart beating rapidly in his chest. He tried to get his heart to slow down as he remembered his dream. Groaning in annoyance, Draco rubbed a hand across his eyes trying to eliminate the images still flickering in his mind of Granger with her legs wrapped tightly around him. Sure he'd had a small crush on her for awhile when they were at Hogwarts but he had managed to get over it and get rid of those dreams by the time seventh year rolled around. The fact that Granger, Potter and Weasley hadn't come back to school that year had probably helped in convincing himself that he was over her. Out of sight, out of mind and all that.

Apparently working so closely with Granger hadn't been such a bright idea if it was going to bring the damn dreams back again, and especially after only one week. At least he wouldn't have to see her today. Draco groaned again as he thought about who he was having lunch with today.

Lucius had only very recently been released from Azkaban and Narcissa had insisted on the three of them getting together for a family lunch. His mother had described it as being pleasant. Draco thought it would be closer to being stretched out on a rack. He was anticipating a long lecture about how he was degrading the Malfoy name, especially when Lucius heard that he was working with Granger in support of house elves.

Draco sighed as he stepped out of bed, the dream pushed to the back of his mind as mental preparations for the day began. He was going to need all his wits about him for lunch.

When Draco walked into the very expensive restaurant that his mother had picked, he spotted Lucius immediately. He was at a table and already cowing the waiter into submission with his complaints about the wine. Draco rolled his eyes as he moved to the table and sat down. "Hello Mother," he said as the waiter scurried off. He tried to keep the smile on his face as he switched his gaze to Lucius. "Father."

Lucius greeted Draco with a supposedly sincere smile. And from that one action Draco knew the inquisition had begun. He had seen that expression before. The one and only time that Draco had visited his father in Azkaban, Lucius had smiled like that before immediately questioning everything in Draco's life. But he had refused to be dictated to by a man stupid enough to get himself locked up. Draco hadn't seen Lucius since that day. "Draco, my boy," Lucius began. "How are you?"

"Fine, thank you sir. And how are you? Azkaban treat you well, did it?"

His father chuckled as if he had made a good joke. "Very well, once you find the right guards." Lucius smirked at him. "And how is your job going? Your mother says it's going excellently and that you are doing the family proud."

Draco sneered before noticing that the waiter was trembling beside their table waiting to pour the wine. He rubbed his temple and motioned for the waiter to go ahead. "It had better be right this time," Lucius said threateningly. He turned back to Draco and repeated his question once the waiter was gone.

"I thought you didn't approve of my job Father," Draco replied, still sneering. "That it was beneath me and far below my position as a Malfoy to be working with common criminals." _Such as yourself,_ he added mentally.

"But that was before I really considered it fully, and I've certainly changed my mind since your mother has been keeping me updated on all your cases." Narcissa glanced over at Draco with an indulgent smile as she sipped her wine. Lucius continued speaking, "I'm glad to see you've been helping all our old friends with any legal trouble they might have."

"Draco's currently defending Parkinson against a fraud charge," Narcissa added.

And there it was. The exact reason why Draco had wanted to help Granger with the house-elf case. During his short career Draco had already garnered a reputation of defending the rich, the Pureblood, the evil. While they paid him a fortune to do so and kept his law practice open, if he was ever going to expand his client base then he had to be appealing to all (because the Malfoy name certainly wasn't) and working with a muggle-born in support of a cause would do a lot to help with that.

Draco shrugged. "He pays well," he commented nonchalantly. He scowled at the expression on Lucius's face. Lucius was still smiling, as if he really was proud of Draco for upholding the tradition of the Malfoys and Purebloods in general. Draco decided it was high time to wipe the smugness right out of him. "Actually," he smirked, "I'm working on another pretty big case at the moment."

"Really?" asked Narcissa. "When did this start?"

"Last week. But we're keeping it under wraps so I didn't want to mention it until now."

"Well, come on Draco," Lucius commanded. "Tell us about it."

Draco leaned back in his seat and crossed his arms, anticipating the reaction he was going to get. "I'm preparing a case for trial for the ERMC."

Narcissa frowned in thought. "ERMC? I don't think I've heard of them."

"It stands for Equal Rights for Magical Creatures." Draco was starting to enjoy himself with his little story now. "It's a small non-profit organization run by Hermione Granger." He could see Lucius starting to swell with indignation the longer he spoke. "A house-elf named Dipsy is suing her masters for freedom."

"What?" Lucius spluttered. "What sort of ridiculous nonsense is that? And you're working with Potter's little witch? Are you out of your senses boy? You're going to bring the whole family into ruin." Lucius glared at him. "You are going to call this off immediately, you hear me?"

"No sir. I don't think I will. I think I'll just keep working on it."

Lucius's eyes narrowed further at his son. Draco merely raised an eyebrow. The rest of lunch was spent with Lucius lecturing and yelling by intervals and Draco ignoring it all.

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Day 11

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_They were standing in the middle of a deserted Hogwarts hallway. She was barely two inches away, glaring heatedly up into his eyes. She scoffed and shook her bushy head. "You're not worth it Malfoy," she spat out._

_Granger turned and tried to walk away but Draco quickly reached and grabbed her wrist, instantly pulling her back into his body. Without losing a moment he brought his lips down on hers. All the longing and anger and passion reared up and poured itself into the kiss. Granger, never one to back down from a fight, wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him back with everything she had._

_Moving his lips to her neck Draco muttered, "Tell me what you want Granger."_

"_You."_

"So Granger let me get this straight. Dipsy was meant to be coming here this afternoon?" Draco was sitting behind Luna's desk, staring across the room at Hermione. It was almost five o'clock and Luna had already gone home. Draco had been sitting in this office for four hours waiting for the house-elf to arrive. "At two o'clock."

"Yes." Hermione glanced up quickly at him before looking back at the quill she was tapping against the table.

"I don't know if you've noticed but it's almost five. So where is she?"

Hermione glared at the tabletop and almost snapped her quill in half. He had been complaining and annoying her for the last two hours. And every time she had given him the same answer. "She probably hasn't been able to slip away yet Malfoy. And stop asking me because I'm just going to keep telling you the same thing. So shut up and just sit there."

At that moment a cracking sound split the air and Dipsy appeared in the space between the two desks. The house-elf glanced between the two before bowing to Hermione. "I'm sorry I'm late Miss Granger," Dipsy said in her squeaky little voice. "The master assigned me cleaning immediately after lunch and I wasn't able to leave until now."

Hermione smiled. "It's okay Dipsy, we understand completely." She gestured towards Draco. "Dipsy, I'd like you to meet Mr Draco Malfoy. He's the lawyer for the case."

Draco moved out from behind Luna's desk and extended his hand. He rolled his eyes slightly when Dipsy bowed low over it rather than shake his hand. "It's nice to meet you Dipsy," he stated as pleasantly as he could after being kept waiting for four hours. Draco conjured a chair for Dipsy before heading back to his own chair. "I just had a couple of questions for you and then you can get back to your family."

Dipsy sent a nervous glance towards Hermione, who nodded reassuringly back. Once Dipsy had turned back to Draco he asked, "You want to sue for complete freedom from your masters, correct?"

"Yes sir."

"And can I ask where you got the idea from?" Draco already knew from reading the case file, but he knew that Dipsy would need to get used to answering these sorts of questions before the trial.

"From a house-elf named Dobby, sir. He used to work at Hogwarts, but he has recently started travelling and spreading his ideas about freedom for all house-elves." Dipsy took a moment to glance down at her long, spindly fingers before continuing. "I know a lot of house-elves disagree with him and think he's crazy. But when I met him, I suddenly realised he was right. And that's when I tracked down Miss Granger and Miss Lovegood."

"Do the Albertens abuse you Dipsy?"

"Abuse me sir?"

Draco tried to explain what he meant. "Do they hit or kick you? Do they make you punish yourself if you do something wrong?"

Dipsy nodded. "They often hit me sir and the other house-elves too. If any of us do something wrong then they tell us to beat our heads against the wall. We're not allowed to stop until the master says so. And Master Michael practices his spells on us when he's home from school, sir."

Draco nodded. He didn't really need to know anything else but he was curious. "What has Dobby been preaching? What was it that he told you?" Draco could still remember the annoying house-elf that used to work for his family. He could remember that as a bratty eleven year old he too had practiced his spells on Dobby. He really was just curious as to what Dobby was up to now.

Hermione raised an eyebrow but didn't interrupt. Dipsy brightened up a little bit. "Dobby told me about how by being free he got to wear clothes, and also how Hogwarts paid him, and with his pay he saved money and bought a present for Mr Harry Potter, and how that made him feel equal. Dobby said that being free made us equal to the masters and that we didn't have to take orders from them."

Draco's eyebrows shot up so high that they almost reached his hairline. His eyes moved slightly to meet Hermione's and he noticed that she looked both amused at his reaction and proud. Of Dobby, for his crusade to save the house-elves? Draco supposed so considering that it so mirrored Hermione's own attempts during their years at Hogwarts to do the same thing. He shook his head slightly. "Thanks Dipsy, that's all I need for now," he claimed. "You should probably get back to your family now before they discover you're gone."

Dipsy bowed again to both Draco and Hermione. After thanking them she disappeared with a crack, leaving Hermione and Draco alone again in the office. Hermione tilted her head as she observed the man sitting across from her. She was wondering just what he had gotten from that interview that he hadn't already known. Aside from the information about what Dobby was currently doing. "So?" she inquired.

Draco smirked. "So what?"

Hermione made a face that seemed to tell him to grow up. "Did you find something important in Dipsy's answers that you couldn't have gotten from reading her file? Or was this whole afternoon just a waste of both our time and a reason for you to complain like a spoiled child?"

"Oh ye of little faith Granger," Draco almost chuckled. She was always so amusing when she was frustrated or angry. "It was actually quite helpful. Dipsy answered my questions both intelligently and respectfully. This will help in trying to convince the Wizengamot that she deserves freedom when she's obviously as smart as a witch or wizard and can express herself eloquently. If she speaks in court the way she was just speaking to me, it will be an extra plus on our side."

Hermione grinned. She could feel it happening. Finally, everything was starting to come together.

----------

Day 16

----------

_Draco was confused when he walked into the office. It was late and Granger had sent him a letter asking him to join her at her office. The room was dark as he stepped inside, except for the single lamp glowing on Granger's desk._

_As Draco moved closer, Granger's chair spun around and there she was. Hermione Granger in all her glory. He gulped as his eyes took in what she was wearing: a black corset, matching knickers and nothing else. "Hello Draco," she purred. Granger slowly uncrossed her legs and pushed herself up. And that was when he noticed the thigh-high black stockings and black high heels._

_Draco could feel himself going weak at the knees and had to lean back against Luna's desk for support as Granger moved to stand directly in front of him. "Granger, what are you doing?" he asked as she ran a hand up his chest, wrapped it around his neck and pulled herself completely flush against his body._

"_Seducing you," she whispered hotly in his ear. _

_That was Draco's breaking point. He grabbed Granger around the waist and pulled her up so that her lips met his. In one quick movement he swept everything off Luna's desk and hauled the temptress in his arms up on to it, still managing to kiss her wildly at the same time._

When Draco walked into the ERMC office on Tuesday morning he tried to suppress a shudder of excitement as a sense of déjà vu passed through him. The room was still dark, just as it had been in his dream, even though it was just after nine. Luna must be late again. Well, as long as she was there before ten o'clock so that they had time to get to the Ministry he wouldn't care. A glance to Draco's left explained where Hermione was. She was sleeping peacefully on her desk with the lamp still on. She must have stayed back late the night before and fallen asleep while working. _Typical Granger, _he thought.

Draco turned the lamp out with a wave of his wand and then moved to stand next to her. His hand hovered hesitantly by her shoulder. How was he meant to wake her up? Poke her? Draco knelt down so that his face was level with Hermione's. There was a lock of hair covering one of her eyes. Draco reached his hand forward, intending to shift the stray curl but quickly snatched his hand back. He really was in trouble if he was starting to act like he did in his dreams. He shook his head trying to get his mind back on track.

He quickly shook Hermione's shoulder but she simply tried to shrug his hand off and continued sleeping. "Come on Granger," muttered Draco as he shook her again. "Wake up."

Opening her eyes slowly Hermione looked at him with bleary eyes. Draco suddenly realised just how close together their faces were. If he moved just a few centimetres forward he would be kissing her. That idea disappeared though as Hermione opened her mouth to speak. "Malfoy? What are you doing here?"

"It's morning. And we've got a meeting to go to." Draco quickly stepped away from her and continued, "So hurry up and get ready. We'll need to leave as soon as Lovegood arrives."

"Right," Hermione murmured. Once she was certain Draco was occupied with something else she checked her breath. He might not be her favourite person in the world but it would still be embarrassing if he had caught her with bad breath.

An hour later Draco, Hermione and Luna were sitting in hard, uncomfortable chairs kindly supplied by the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. They were outside Robert Rogerson's office wondering when exactly he was going to appear. The Department Head had already kept them waiting for half an hour and Draco was getting impatient. He knew that Rogerson was doing this on purpose, hoping they would simply leave and thereby have no reason to launch an appeal in the Wizengamot.

Draco began tapping his foot incessantly; trying to relieve some of the tension he could feel rising in him. But it only took a few minutes for Hermione to glare at him and say something about it. "Malfoy stop tapping your feet," she said with a scowl. "It's getting on my nerves."

"Well, gee Granger, I'm sorry," he snapped back. He was in no mood by this point for Hermione's bitching. "Maybe if you tamed that hair of yours, which just so happens to be annoying me, then maybe I'd stop tapping my feet."

Hermione scoffed and turned away.

Another hour after that Robert Rogerson finally appeared with a peeved expression on his face. "Oh, still here are you?" he asked, not really looking for an answer.

"Yes actually, we are, as you can see," Draco sneered. "And Miss Granger, Miss Lovegood and I would like to speak to you for a few moments if that would be possible."

"I don't think it will, I'm sorry. I am a very busy man you know Mr Malfoy."

Draco wasn't put off though. "We had an appointment scheduled at ten o'clock Mr Rogerson. We'd be pleased if you would now honour that commitment and allow us just a few minutes of your precious time. After all, you wouldn't want to make anyone cry now, would you?" He directed a swift glance towards Luna, who immediately adopted a morose expression, looking for all the world as if she were about to burst into tears.

Rogerson frowned but relented and opened his door for them to pass through. "Miss Granger," he greeted with a sneer as she entered, "a pleasure to see you again."

"The pleasure is all mine Mr Rogerson," Hermione replied acidly.

They all sat down and Rogerson leaned back with his fingers touching, watching the others with narrowed eyes. It was a position Hermione had seen him in before. It was the stance he had adopted every time she had come to suggest a new innovation while working for the Department. She had come to associate that look with Rogerson's continual ignorance, belligerence and refusal of progression. "What can I do for you Mr Malfoy?" Rogerson was straight to the point. He wanted this over with as soon as possible.

Draco cocked his head to the side and smirked. "We've come to speak to you about a house-elf named Dipsy. She currently works for the Alberten family."

Rogerson glanced at his watch. "Is this going somewhere Mr Malfoy? I have another meeting to get to."

"Yes it is," Draco said through gritted teeth. He was liking this man less and less, and was trying to keep in control of his temper. The last thing they needed was for Draco to start yelling at and insulting the stupid, overweight excuse for a Department Head. "We would like you to force the Albertens to free Dipsy, as that is precisely what she wants. We have evidence that they have been mistreating her and all their house-elves."

Rogerson let out a bark of laughter. "Surely you're not serious? What utter nonsense." Rogerson shook his head and stood up. "I most certainly will not do as you asked. The most preposterous thing I've ever heard. Now I think we are done here Mr Malfoy."

Draco, Hermione and Luna all rose as well. "If that is your final answer then I believe we are. We'll see you soon in court Mr Rogerson. I'm sure the Wizengamot will like to hear your testimony in this case." Draco nodded to the girls and they all turned to leave. "Good day Mr Rogerson."

Hermione, Luna and Draco didn't say anything until they had Apparated back to the ERMC office. Once they had arrived Draco turned to the two women and stated, "You've got your day in court now." Hermione and Luna glanced at each other and grinned. Draco continued, "I'll set up a date for the trial and let you know."

Draco was about to leave but paused when Hermione called out his name. She smiled and said simply, "Thank you."

He smiled back.


	3. Part Three

**Annoyance in the Court**

_and __the past knocks on your door_

_and throws stones at your window at four in the morning_

_- Shine, _Anna Nalick

**Part Three**

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Day 26

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_Draco could feel Pansy pulling at the fabric of his dress robes. He knew that she was trying to get his attention but he was too busy watching _her. _She was standing off to the side of the dance floor by herself. The large, hulking Krum had walked off to get drinks and left her alone._

_Draco had hardly been able to take his eyes off her all night, ever since she arrived in those blue robes and with tamed hair and looking completely unrecognisable. Hermione Granger was beautiful tonight and everyone in the room was aware of it. He wasn't aware that he had shaken Pansy off or that he had moved at all until he was suddenly standing right in front of Granger._

_He held a hand out to her before he could lose his nerve. "Would you care to dance?" Draco asked cautiously._

_Hermione's eyes widened in shock. She opened her mouth to reply but immediately snapped it shut again. With a hesitant smile on her face she nodded and placed a hand in his. Draco returned the smile and led Hermione out onto the floor._

_The rest of the world disappeared. He didn't hear Pansy screaming at him or the outrage of Potty and the Weasel. He didn't see the confused look on Krum's face when he returned with the drinks or the approval on Dumbledore's._

_All that Draco could see was Hermione looking up at him and smiling. Nothing else mattered._

Draco stood and looked around at the full Wizengamot assembled, psyching himself up to deliver his closing argument. He had provided his witnesses (including Dobby who he, Hermione and Luna had been able to smuggle out again before Rogerson and his henchmen could get their hands on him) and the defence had provided theirs. This would be his last chance to sway the court in his favour. This moment could make or break their whole case. What he said now would determine whether Dipsy would be able to walk away from the Albertens as a free elf.

Draco didn't need to look to his left to know that Hermione and Luna were looking up at him from their table. He could feel the weight of their stares, just as he could feel the weight of all the members of the Wizengamot all looking down on him. Pulling a piece of paper from his pocket, Draco read through the short good luck note he had received from his mother that morning. His mother and Lucius might not agree with his decision to work on this law suit but at least Narcissa was consistent in her love and wish for Draco to succeed. He had received a similar note from her every morning before entering a new trial.

Taking one final deep breath, Draco strode forward and began to speak. "How would you feel if your child was hit or kicked? How would you feel if they were burnt, scalded, made to beat their own head against a wall or had spells tested on them and were unable to fight back? How would you feel if it happened to you yourself? And all because you missed a speck of dirt while dusting. Or because you put too much pepper on the roast pork. This is what house-elves just like Dipsy have to put up with every minute of every day."

As Draco fell into the rhythm of his argument he stopped hearing what it was that he was actually saying. He knew that he had started strong. He could feel that he was speaking well. He let the words flow from him but the sound of his voice no longer registered with him.

What did register was the look of awe on Hermione's face. Luna was no longer in a dreamland, but was listening intently to every word he said. The defence lawyer's scowl and the fury that passed like a cloud across Mr and Mrs Alberten's faces. Robert Rogerson twitching at the side of the courtroom, knowing that he would soon lose the first tiny part of all his power. And Dipsy, who was glowing with gratitude in between Hermione and Luna.

There was absolute silence as Draco finished his closing statement. No one moved as they all stared at him. The members of the Wizengamot were all watching him speculatively. Draco nodded to them and returned to his seat next to Hermione. He didn't let the smile erupt across his face, it was too soon for that, but he felt certain that they would win. Draco didn't think he'd ever been surer of something in his life.

Minister Scrimgeour held everyone's attention as he said, "Both sides have presented compelling arguments. I believe it is in the best interest for all if I and the other members of the Wizengamot now discuss in full all that has been presented to us today. We will owl you our decision once we have reached it." Standing to leave he added, "Court dismissed."

Luna was already discussing the proceedings with Dipsy so Draco turned his head to Hermione. She was quickly writing down a note, but sensing his gaze she glanced up to meet it. When it looked like he wasn't going to say anything at all Hermione murmured, "That was amazing Malfoy."

The corners of his mouth tilted up. "I think we should get out of here," he replied and then smirked. "I have a father to annoy with tales of my heroic efforts to save the house-elves."

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Day 29

----------

_Hermione had seen Draco only once after the Battle of Hogwarts. The battle was over and everyone had been congregating in the Great Hall to regroup and to heal wounds and to mourn._

_She had been sitting with the Weasleys, trying to give them whatever love and support and comfort that she could. Ron's head had been resting against her shoulder and it was as Hermione was looking around the Hall over Ron's head that she had spotted Draco._

_He was sitting with his parents but had been staring at the Weasley family. Hermione had scowled. How dare he impose himself on their grief in that way? But she had looked closer then and properly processed the expression on his face. He was tired. Tired of the fighting, tired of the war, tired of everything and nothing all at the same time._

_She couldn't help thinking that he looked exactly how she felt._

Draco burst into the office waving a couple of pieces of paper in his hands. "Granger!" he yelled in excitement. "Where's Lovegood?" He looked around but couldn't see her anywhere in the tiny office.

Hermione looked up from the book she was reading while eating lunch. She blinked in surprise at Draco's expression. He looked like a little kid in a candy shop. She had never, in all her years of knowing him, seen him look so happy. "Luna's gone out for lunch," she answered.

Draco looked annoyed for a moment and then brightened again. "Well, she'll just have to hear the news later," he decided. "This is too good to wait for her."

Hermione bit her lip as she stood up. "Is that what I think it is?" she queried, stepping closer.

Draco held out the two sheets of paper. "Read them."

Hermione quickly read through both letters, one addressed to Draco and the other to Mr Alberten. She gasped in surprise as a large grin spread across her face. She looked back up and her eyes met Draco's in amazement. "We won," Hermione whispered. Then the news really seemed to sink in and she screamed, "_We won!_"

Without thinking Hermione threw her arms around Draco's neck and hugged him. Never one to throw away an opportunity he picked her up and spun them around in circles. As he set her back down on her feet Hermione pulled back slightly, still smiling up at Draco. She suddenly realised what she was doing, and just whose arms she was being held by, and was about to pull away completely when Draco leaned down and kissed her.

Her lips were just as soft as Draco had imagined they would be. Slowly he moved his lips against Hermione's. Bringing one of his hands up to cup her cheek, Hermione began to respond and kiss him back. She grasped his arms tightly as he nibbled on her bottom lip and slipped his tongue inside her mouth.

Just as quickly as the kiss had begun, Hermione broke it off and stared at Draco, attempting to get her breath back. "What are you doing?" she asked through gasps.

"Kissing you," Draco murmured while leaning forward to continue but Hermione prevented it from happening by leaning back further.

"But you're Draco Malfoy." Hermione was confused. Didn't Malfoy hate her? And wasn't she meant to loathe him? And yet the feeling of his hands resting on her hips felt so good. And his lips. Merlin, those lips.

"And you are Hermione Granger," Draco replied moving closer again.

"But-"

Draco quickly cut her off by holding her face tenderly between both hands. "Granger, shut up."

And with that he kissed her again.

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Day 30

----------

_Hermione smiled at Ron. She was lying in his arms in a meadow by a small, trickling creek. She had forced him on a summer picnic right before her return to Hogwarts in order to introduce him to Muggle food. She had packed Mars Bars and beer and all sorts of other things that Ron had never seen before. Hermione had been amused to see him scoff down all the Mars Bars and turn up his nose at the taste of beer (he had complained that it didn't have the sweet warmth of butterbeer and was therefore inferior). And now they were simply lying peacefully in the sun together._

"_I love you Hermione," Ron stated._

_Tilting her head up, Hermione kissed him softly. "I love you too," she murmured as she pulled away, intending to rest her head against his chest again. But when Hermione opened her eyes it was Draco Malfoy staring back at her with his hands around her waist._

Hermione was utterly and completely confused. She was sitting at home with a glass of wine and trying to figure out exactly what her own feelings were.

Earlier in the day she had delivered the court order to the Albertens and had made sure that Dipsy could leave the manor safely. Having asked what Dipsy intended to do now, Hermione had received the answer that Dipsy was planning to travel with Dobby for some time in order to spread the word about elfish freedom. She hoped to soon be sending more house-elves to Hermione and Luna.

Hermione had returned to the office afterwards to help Luna put away the last files on the case, and then had ended up having Luna send her home early because she was so distracted. Since getting home she had been stuck trying to figure out what was going on. Draco Malfoy had kissed her. She had kissed Draco Malfoy. And actually enjoyed it! Had the world suddenly turned upside down and she just hadn't noticed?

Hermione knew exactly how Harry and Ron would react if they knew about it. She knew what Ginny would say, what the Weasleys would say, hell she even knew how the Malfoys and Pansy Parkinson and all the Slytherins would react. But Hermione had no idea how she was meant to react. If someone had told her a month ago that she would be kissing Draco Malfoy she would have been horrified, disgusted, and angry that anyone could suggest such a thing. But now? After she had seen him working and getting invested in the law suit and seeing him smile and laugh and help… for one of the very few times in her life Hermione Granger had no idea what to do.

She was just getting ready to pull herself off the lounge and start making dinner (only to eat it all by herself as always) when someone knocked on the door. As Hermione went to answer it, she wondered who it could be. Not many people knew where she lived. Hermione considered Harry and Ron but quickly dismissed them. Harry was likely having dinner with Ginny and the Weasleys while Ron was probably out with the blonde bombshell.

She blinked in surprise when she opened the door. "Malfoy?" _Speak of the devil and all that,_ Hermione thought, beginning to feel slightly flustered.

"Hi Granger," he replied leaning against her doorway. Why did he have to look so cool and collected when her insides were all twisting up together into knots?

"How do you know where I live?" she blurted out. The thought had popped into her head and apparently her mouth was working faster than her brain could stop it.

Draco shifted his weight and pushed his hands into his pockets. "I stopped by your office but Luna said you had already left. I made her give me your address." He glanced behind him at the empty hallway before saying, "Are you going to invite me in?"

Hermione stared at him for a moment but then opened the door wider so that he could step past her into the apartment. If Draco could act calmly after what had happened yesterday then so could she. Taking a deep breath she shut the door and followed Draco into the lounge room.

Draco was taking in the apartment. It was small and yet he could feel that it was very like Hermione. She had decorated in warm browns and across one wall were a couple of large bookcases all completely filled. He smirked to see that the bookworm he had known during school still existed. She had just grown up somewhat.

"Was there something you wanted Malfoy?" Hermione asked. Draco turned and saw that she was watching him with her arms crossed.

"Actually yes. I wanted to ask you to have dinner with me."

"Come again?" Surely she did not just hear that.

"Have dinner with me Granger."

So Hermione did hear right. But was he crazy? "But you're-"

Draco rolled his eyes, anticipating what she was going to say. "Draco Malfoy, yes I know. And you're Hermione Granger. We've had this conversation already." He watched as Hermione bit her lip, obviously trying to find more arguments against the idea. "It's just dinner Granger. Nothing more. One date and then we can see if we want to try it again. Is that okay with you?"

Hermione hesitated slightly and thought about it. She hadn't been on a date in so long. It would be nice to go out for once and have a fancy dinner. And it wasn't as if Draco was detestable anymore. In fact, Hermione thought she might even, possibly, like him a little bit. "Okay," she finally agreed. "Dinner."

Draco smirked. He walked back to the door and held it open for her. "Can't I even get changed?" Hermione questioned him.

Draco glanced back at her to take a look at what she was wearing. She obviously hadn't gotten changed after work since she was still wearing a grey suit. "You look fine," he replied.

Hermione huffed, grabbed her bag and wand, and walked out the door muttering. "Fine he says. Not pretty. Not beautiful. Just _fine._"

Draco chuckled as he closed the door behind them. This was obviously going to be a night that he wouldn't forget anytime soon.


End file.
